Liver cancer is the fifth most commonly occurring cancer in men and the ninth most commonly occurring cancer in women. There were over 840,000 new cases in 2018. The top 25 countries with the highest rates of liver cancer in 2018 are given in the tables below.
The Continuous Update Project Panel judged there is strong evidence that greater body fatness, and consuming alcoholic drinks and foods contaminated by aflatoxins increase the risk of liver cancer. There is strong evidence that drinking coffee decreases the risk of liver cancer. There is some evidence that being physically active and consuming fish might decrease the risk of liver cancer. Read about all the evidence in our Third Expert Report.
Age-standardised rates are used in the tables. This is a summary measure of the rate of disease that a population would have if it had a standard age structure. Standardisation is necessary when comparing populations that differ with respect to age because age has a powerful influence on the risk of dying from cancer.
Liver cancer rates: both sexes
Mongolia had the highest rate of liver cancer in 2018, followed by Egypt.
Rank | Country | Age-standardised rate per 100,000 |
---|---|---|
1 | Mongolia | 93.7 |
2 | Egypt | 32.2 |
3 | Gambia | 23.9 |
4 | Vietnam | 23.2 |
5 | Laos | 22.4 |
6= | Cambodia | 21.8 |
6= | Guinea | 21.8 |
8 | Thailand | 21.0 |
9 | China | 18.3 |
10 | South Korea | 17.3 |
11 | North Korea | 16.5 |
12 | Ghana | 15.4 |
13 | Liberia | 15.2 |
14 | Guatemala | 14.9 |
15 | Guam | 14.8 |
16= | Moldova | 13.8 |
16= | Burkina Faso | 13.8 |
18 | Vanuatu | 13.1 |
19 | Senegal | 12.6 |
20 | Singapore | 12.3 |
21= | Papua New Guinea | 11.9 |
21= | Guinea-Bissau | 11.9 |
23 | Philippines | 11.5 |
24 | Mauritania | 11.3 |
25 | Cape Verde | 10.7 |
Liver cancer rates in men
Mongolia had the highest rate of liver cancer in men in 2018, followed by Egypt.
Rank | Country | Age-standardised rate per 100,000 |
---|---|---|
1 | Mongolia | 117.0 |
2 | Egypt | 49.0 |
3 | Vietnam | 39.0 |
4 | Gambia | 36.5 |
5 | Cambodia | 34.6 |
6 | Laos | 33.4 |
7 | Thailand | 32.2 |
8 | Guinea | 27.9 |
9 | South Korea | 27.7 |
10 | China | 27.6 |
11 | North Korea | 25.4 |
12 | Guam | 24.5 |
13 | Ghana | 24.4 |
14 | Moldova | 20.9 |
15 | Vanuatu | 20.2 |
16 | Singapore | 19.5 |
17 | Burkina Faso | 19.2 |
18 | Liberia | 18.9 |
19 | Senegal | 18.0 |
20 | Philippines | 17.8 |
21= | Guinea-Bissau | 17.3 |
21= | Samoa | 17.3 |
23 | Brunei | 17.0 |
24 | Mauritania | 16.8 |
25 | Guatemala | 15.8 |
Liver cancer rates in women
Mongolia had the highest rate of liver cancer in women in 2018, followed Egypt.
Rank | Country | Age-standardised rate per 100,000 |
---|---|---|
1 | Mongolia | 74.1 |
2 | Egypt | 16.7 |
3 | Guinea | 16.3 |
4 | Guatemala | 14.1 |
5 | Laos | 13.1 |
6 | Cambodia | 12.7 |
7 | Gambia | 12.0 |
8 | Liberia | 11.7 |
9 | Thailand | 11.4 |
10 | Papua New Guinea | 10.0 |
11 | Burkina Faso | 9.7 |
12 | Vietnam | 9.5 |
13 | Cape Verde | 9.3 |
14= | China | 9.0 |
14= | North Korea | 9.0 |
16= | Moldova | 8.4 |
16= | Senegal | 8.4 |
18 | South Korea | 8.2 |
19 | Nicaragua | 8.0 |
20 | Ghana | 7.6 |
21 | Sierra Leone | 7.5 |
22 | Guinea-Bissau | 7.3 |
23= | Armenia | 6.9 |
23= | El Salvador | 6.9 |
23= | Ivory Coast | 6.9 |